HC clears stretch under litigation for Kidderpore metro station
2
Kolkata: The Purple line overcame a major hurdle on Wednesday as a Calcutta High Court division bench dismissed the appeal of tenants of a DH Road property where the Nepal Consulate is supposed to be shifted, to make way for the metro corridor.
The building has already been acquired by Metro Railway but the litigation prevented it from taking possession of the land. The high court has asked the petitioners to vacate the property within two weeks.
The division bench comprising Justices Debanshu Basak and Prasenjit Biswas dismissed the appeal of tenants of City Properties on 1 National Library Avenue (on the DH Road-Ekbalpore crossing) so the building can now house the Nepal Consulate, located next door, to make way for the Purple line or the Joka-Esplanade Metro corridor.
Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL), which is implementing the 14km metro line, needs the land where Nepal Consulate is currently located (7/1 DH Road) for utility diversion and widening of the western side of Diamond Harbour so that 60 metres of the 450m ramp can be built in this stretch.
The Purple line now runs an elevated 7.7km from Joka to Majerhat. Work for the last elevated station at Mominpur has started.
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"We told the court that the tenants have already accepted the compensation and the property now belongs to RVNL," Sakya Sen, counsel for RVNL, told TOI.
The issue dates back to 2022 when Metro Railway, which runs the city's rapid transit network, published land acquisition notices for the property owned by City Properties Pvt Ltd at 1 National Library Avenue.
"The owner of City Properties claimed his compensation and the premise was handed over to metro in Nov 2024," Sen said.
"The property had several tenants running their businesses in the premises. Three tenants with five shops or tenancy spaces filed a writ petition before Calcutta High Court.
The writ petition was dismissed by Justice Aniruddha Roy on Dec 17, 2024, directing the petitioners to vacate the land within six weeks and claim compensation from Metro Railway in accordance with law," Sen said.
The petitioners then moved the division bench for a stay. The appeal petition was heard on Tuesday and Wednesday before Justices Debangsu Basak and Prasenjit Biswas. "The high court bench dismissed the appeal stating that tenants cannot object to the land acquisition as the land owner has agreed for acquisition and handed over the land to Metro Railway, which can vacate the premises with police assistance," the counsel said.
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